The Joy Trip Project

Reporting on the Business, Art and Culture of the Active Lifestyle

As standup paddling has exploded in popularity, the number of new enthusiasts and instructors eager to teach has also grown. The short learning curve and minimal equipment required to paddle is allowing the sport to spread like a virus. But with this influx of new users, rental programs, race events, on-water yoga lessons and stroke clinics, there is also a growing need to establish professional standards for safety and best practices in board handling. Offering certification courses meant to teach the teachers, twin watermen Dick and Dane DeBoer...

It goes without saying. Our world is growing bigger and more complicated everyday. Especially in our urban centers where economic and political fortunes are beginning to shift and reflect the values of a much more culturally diverse population. Despite the devastating effects failing banks and climate change there are rising many new opportunities to tap into the dynamic energy and financial resources of previously under represented members of our society. Leading the way toward positive outcomes in a brighter future is urban revitalization strategist Majora Carter.
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Growth in the world of SUP takes shape in all forms and Ryan Wibeck’s Carve Industries of Lyons, Colo. is making a bold statement through a line of handmade standup and surfboards made exclusively from wood of beetle-killed pine trees.As climate change and a warming planet make the weather more hospitable to the dreaded pine beetle, it’s continuing to lay waste to millions of trees across the west. Surrounded by a tremendous fire hazard, as well as an overwhelming surplus of perfectly good wood, land owners and the local bureau...

When the guys at Forge Motion Pictures wrote to tell me about their latest web movie Cascada they played it down as nothing special. "The new short film is pretty simple kayak porn with soul, 5 minutes," they said via Facebook, "not anything too significant."
I beg to differ on all points but one. Set against the raging water falls of a Mexican jungle this captivating little gem actually runs 7 minutes-plus with graceful images of passion and skill that can hardly be called porn. Segments shot in slow...

WhenAlpinisteditor Katie Ives asked me to write a story about diversity in mountaineering, I was incredibly honored and more than a little thrilled. But upon deeper reflection, I realized to my chagrin that there were only so many writers she might have tapped to address this emerging issue in the world of adventure. As I am one of relatively few people of color actively participating in the American outdoor industry, let alone working as a journalist, it inevitably falls to me to speak to the unfortunate reality...

National Geographic Young Explorer Asa Firestone wants to inspire kids through climbing. Though not a particularly original concept in itself, the idea aims to gain traction in a unique location: the crime-ridden slums of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Armed with an MBA from the Marshal School of Business at the University of Southern California, Firestone plans to build a social and economic alternative to life in gangs along with a climbing wall and the educational infrastructure to train young people as alpine athletes and commercial guides.
Known locally as...